Known for its consistently rich flavor along with a deep, wine-like acidity and pleasant aroma, Kenya coffee is distinctly bright with complex tones of fruit and berry. Kenyan coffees are wet-processed (washed) coffees—bold and with a body that is usually full or medium.

Kenya Coffee has Resonant Cup Presence

Known for their potent sweetness and powerful character, Kenyan coffees have a resonant cup presence, exhibiting intense flavors with a distinct winey richness and dry, winey aftertaste similar to Ethiopian Harrar yet with more of a full-bodied richness than Ethiopian coffees.

A good Kenya coffee is vibrant yet clean and crisp, not subtle or delicate, and typically very well-balanced. Notes of lemony citrus may be present, even pepper, along with tones of blackberry. The aftertaste of a Kenya coffee may be quite dry with a lemony zest to it, or perhaps winey.

As some of the world’s finest gourmet coffees, Kenyan coffees are carefully graded after harvest. The coffee beans are separated (sorted) and rated by bean size as well as shape, color, and density, with the general assumption being that bigger coffee beans are higher in quality. The largest and best coffee beans from Kenya are graded Kenya AA.

A general rules with Kenya coffee beans is that bigger beans have more essential oils that enhance the tastes and aromas.

Other factors are also important in determining the beans’ quality, and cuppers (professional coffee tasters) debate whether bean size necessarily means a better quality of roasted, ground, brewed Kenyan coffee.

Nevertheless, sorting is done by size, and the screen size Kenya AA is the highest sorting beans just over one-fourth inch in diameter. A bit smaller is the Kenyan AB grade, which is regarded by some as a better bean than the AA.